Child&#39;s rotatable seat



Sept. 30, 1958 L. JUDD' ETAL CHILDS ROTATABLE SEAT Filed April 27, 1956 INVENTORS Loyid In Judd Y Ru h/H- Judd ATTORNEY United States Patent CHILDS ROTATABLE SEAT Loyd L. Judd and Ruth H. Judd, Yale, Mich.

Application April 27, 1956, Serial No. 581,098

3 Claims. (Cl. 15595) This invention relates to child amusement devices, and more particularly, to exercising and entertaining apparatuses that are rotated by the shifting of a childs weight relative to an axis of rotation of the device.

An object of the invention is to provide a childs amusement device having a seat freely rotatable on a central and slightly inclined vertical axis and which is rotated by a child in seated position thereon leaning his body and moving his legs relative to said inclined axis.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in a device of the character indicated, a novel and improved upstanding, supporting, and hand-holding element for a child on the seat which positions the child so as to enable him to shift his weight to efIect rotation.

A further object of the invention is to provide, in a device as outlined above, a novel and improved pedestal upon which the seat is rotatably mounted and which is adjustable to different heights and inclinations of the seat.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a device of the above-indicated character which is simple and substantial in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and yet highly beneficial because of its exercising and entertaining characteristics.

These, together, with various auxiliary features and objects of the invention which will later become apparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by the present invention, a preferred embodiment of which has been illustrated by way of example only in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure his a side elevation of the improved rotatable seat;

Figure 2 is a front elevation of same;

Figure 3 is a transverse horizontal section taken substantially on line 33 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary and substantially vertical section taken on line 44 of Figure 1.

Referring now more specifically to the accompanying drawings wherein like numerals designate similar parts throughout the various views, there is indicated generally by the numeral a pedestal which includes a base member 11 and a post 12 adjustably supported by said base member to different heights and inclinations to the vertical. The base member 11 consists of a circular ringlike bottom 13 that rests upon a floor or ground surface, a plurality of upwardly and inwardly directed bowed braces 14 fixed at their lower and outer ends to said circular ringlike bottom 13, and a vertically arranged plate 15 fixed to the upper and inner ends of said braces. The plate 15, while being spaced a substantial distance above the ringlike bottom 13, is located slightly to a side of the vertical center of said ringlike bottom so as to position the post 12, which is attached to one side of the plate 15, at the center of said circular bottom. Extending transversely through the plate 15 is a pair of vertically spaced openings 16 and 17. The lower opening 17 is elongated and is arced from the center of the upper Patented Sept. 30, 1958 opetrfiing 16 for a purpose which will presently be set for The post 12, which for the purpose of illustration and for also providing a post with opposite flat sides thereon, is shown as being hexagon'iii cross section. .A plurality of transversely extending and vertically spaced holes 18 are provided through the post 12 intermediate its upper and lower end portions, and in a pair of these holes that are adjacent one another and the openings 16 "and 17 in the plate 15, bolts 19 and 20 are extended and have nuts 21 and 22, respectively, threaded thereon for securing a flat side of said hexagon-shaped post to a flat side of said plate. The provision of a plurality of vertical spaced holes 18 in the post 12 permits extending the bolts 19 and 20 through other holes than those shown for adjustment of the post to dilferent heights, while the provision of an elongated opening 17in the plate 15 permits changing the inclination of the post relative to vertical.

qA bore 23 extending parallel with and partially in the post 12 from its upper end has a ball 24 seated on the bottom thereof upon which bears the lower extremity of a rotatable spindle 25 received in said bore. The bore .23 is stepped, as at 26, to a larger diameter at its upper end portion and has aneedle radial bearing 27 in saidenlargement that bears against the outer cylindrical surface of the spindle. Also in the enlargement 26 and above the bearing 27 is a split ring 28' which is retained on the spindle by being partially received in an annular groove in said spindle. Threaded on the upper end of the post 12 is a cap 29 which has an opening 30 therein through which the spindle 25 extends and of a size less than the outer diameter of the split ring 28 for prevent is like a large flange on the spindle, and through holesin both the seat and plate, stove bolts 33 with nuts 34 threaded thereon securely attach the seat to the plate. The seat 32 is preferably but not essentially constructed of plywood and is of a saddlelike shape in plan with the attachment of the spindle 25 located substantially at the center of the underside thereof. At the location on the saddlelike seat Where the pommel of a saddle would normally be, there is provided an upstanding support 35, which in the present instance, has its profile substantially the shape of the head of a horse, as clearly shown in Figure 1.- The upstanding support 35 is also preferably of wood construction, of a thickness greater than that of said seat, and of a substantial width for partially overlapping said seat. In the overlapping portion of the support 35 and extending its full height and in the seat 32 are aligned openings through which the perpendicular leg 36 of a relatively large T bolt extends, while the transverse legs 38 of said bolt engage in small recesses 39 in the top of said support and extend beyond opposite sides of said support to provide handlebars. On the underside of the seat 32 directly beneath the overlapping portion of the support 35, there is a washerlike plate 40 through which the leg 36 of the T bolt also extends and has a nut 41 threaded thereon for securing the support 35 and handlebars 38 to the seat. Another fastener for securement of the support 35 to the seat is provided in the form of a wood screw 42 threaded into said support after extending through openings in the washerlike plate 40 and seat 32.

In operation, the child, before mounting the apparatus, turns the rotatable seat 32 to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1. This decreases the height of the rear portion of the seat, and less effort is required to climb upon the seat. The child then grips the handle bars and pulls himself to seated position on the rear portion of the seat with his legs hanging down at opposite sides of the seat. When the child desires to rotate the seat, he slides himself forward on the seat until he is in a position whereby his weight is substantially above the axis of rotation of the seat. When in this position, his legs straddle the upstanding support 35, and it is an easy matter for him to prevent falling or sliding sidewise from the seat by applying pressure of his legs against the sides of the support. Then, by leaning his body forward and swinging his legs-from the knee joints forward, his weight is shifted relative to the axis of rotation and the seat starts to rotate. By continuing to shift his weight at the proper time according to the position of the seat relative to its inclined axis, the seat is rotated by its eifort to move the center of gravity to the lowermost point.

The adjustments to different heights of the seat and inclinations of the axis of rotation of the seat permits the use of the apparatus by children of difierent sizes, it being apparent that the higher the seat is elevated, the lesser degree of inclination is necessary to eifect rotation.

In view of the above description, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, it is believed that a clear understanding of the construction, operation, and advantages of the improved invention will be quite apparent to those skilled in this art. A more detailed description is accordingly deemed unnecessary.

It is to be understood, however, that even though there is herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, various changes may be made without departing from the spirit or full intendment of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An amusement apparatus comprising a base mem ber consisting of a circular ringlike bottom portion, braces rigidly secured at their lower ends to said circular ringlike bottom and extending upwardly and inwardly thereof, and a vertically arranged plate secured to the upper ends of said braces and positioned slightly to one side of the center of said circular ringlike bottom, said plate having a pair of vertically spaced openings therethrough, one of which is elongated and arced relative to the center of the other opening; a post having a bore extending partially therein from its upper end and a plurality of vertically spaced openings extending transversely therethrough below said bore; a pair of fasteners extending through the openings in said plate and a pair of openings in said post so as to clamp said post at different heights and inclinations to the side of said plate nearest the center of said circular ringlike bottom; a spindle having its lower end portion rotatably mounted in said bore; a seat secured substantially centrally thereof on the upper end of said spindle; and an upstanding hand-engaging support rigidly secured on said seat and to a side of the center thereof so as to be straddled by an occupant of said seat.

2. An amusement apparatus comprising a stationary base member, a post carried by said base member at an angle to the vertical and having a bore extending partially therein and parallel therewith from its upper end, a spindle having its lower end portion rotatably mounted in said bore, a seat secured substantially centrally thereof on the upper end of said spindle and having an opening therethrough to a side of the center thereof, an upstanding support positioned on the upper surface of said seat and to the side of the center thereof through which said opening extends, said support having an opening extending longitudinally therethrough and aligned with the opening through the seat, a T bolt having the perpendicular leg thereof extending through the openings in said support and seat and with its transverse legs engaging the upper portion of said support and extending beyond opposite sides thereof, and a nut threaded on the lower end of said perpendicular leg and engaging under said seat so as to retain said upstanding support on said seat.

3. An amusement apparatus comprising a stationary base member, a post fixed to and carried at a slight angle to the vertical by said base member, a spindle having its lower end portion rotatably mounted on the upper end portion of said inclined post and extending above and parallel with said inclined post, a seat of saddlelike shape in plan secured substantially centrally thereof on the upper end of said spindle, an upstanding support rigidly secured on said saddlelike seat at the forward side of the center of said seat so as to be straddled by an occupant of the seat when his weight is positioned substantially centrally of the axis of rotation of the seat, and handle bars extending transversely from the upper portion of said upstanding support, said upstanding support having elongated opposite sides that are engageable by the legs of the occupant so as to aid in his support on said seat.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,114,062 Steinmetz Oct. 20, 1914 1,443,424 McClure et al. Jan. 30, .1923 2,412,750 Raitch Dec. 17, 1946 2,467,338 Sellards Apr. 12, 1949 

